My grandmother's labradoodle is insane. She's sweet but she's a kisser and a jumper. She practically knocked me over and my kids (6 and 4) just avoid her. We have a beagle and he is medium sized. About 35 lbs (he's the bigger sized of the breed) and absolutely amazing with the kids. We got him 2 years before our first was born and we have never had one issue with him. He house trained in a week and doesn't even bark much which is weird for a beagle. We had been training him since we got him (when he was 8 weeks old) and I have pictures of both of my kids sleeping on him.

In our experience, a Goldendoodle is less barkey than an unmixed poodle. Ours is kinda talkative, though, in a Chewbacca kind of fashion. She'll bark once if she hears something unfamiliar or something she doesn't like and after that she mumbles and whines. We can have conversations with her that way that can last minutes. Another thing is that she is light boned like a poodle (of course she is 3/4 poodle, so that's to be expected). She's a lot lighter than many of the dogs that are smaller than her, including unmixed labs and Ridgebacks. She's not skinny; according to the vet she's perfect.

You guys got such dirty minds! Although it would be tempting to set up a hidden camera and send the dog out to fetch such naughty toys in a public park!

I'm sure I've told this before but when the Bloke split with his ex his idea of packing up his stuff was to pull out a drawer and upend it over a box. The time came when he rented this place and moved all his boxes in and then brought his mum's dog to have a sniff around the house. As soon as she got upstairs to the second bedroom where the boxes were she had her nose in them for a rummage and lo and behold what does she pull out but the biggest plastic penis I have ever seen. I mean this thing was Cockzilla and if I'd have tried something like that I'd be in hospital with internal injuries but apparently his ex... Well, I digress... The dog grabs this giant plastic cock and starts zooming around the house chomping on it and wagging her tail for all it's worth while the Bloke chases after her yelling to me that he had no idea it was in there and apologising again and again. I had to lean against the wall and then slid to sit on the floor because I could hardly breath for laughing. He eventually caught the dog and took the offending item away from her and threw it back into the box but as soon as his back was turned the dog was in there again and the whole thing started over. To this day I don't know how I didn't pee my pants laughing.

This is a bummer. This poor guy is a product of his environment. Dogs, and especially hyper dogs, need constant training and exercise. It definitely sounds like he's not the right fit for you..but hopefully someone with the time and patience (and no small children) will come into his life.

That being said, I've heard golden retrievers are excellent family dogs. A friend of mine has one that she got as a puppy and it's the sweetest, most gentle and loving dog ever. This dog never went through a horrible puppy stage. Then again, like someone said..it could be luck of the draw.

I have two German Shepherds. They're smart and they know it, so they're kind of assholes.

^ That's how I feel too. Sorry for the dog. Not that it's Bella's responsibility to try to undo all the bad habits but these are the kind of dogs who end up in shelters because their owners can't control them because they never took the time to train them and just expected the dog to figure things out on their own.

The dog isn't trained in a way to be happy in our family but he seemed happy to be home. The second daughter was there when I took him back and she seemed happy to see him. I have a gut feeling they will keep him.

My oldest really really doesn't want a goldendoodle. Grrr. Her list is chocolate or yellow lab or a German Shepard. I told her she's lucky she can get whatever she wants when she moves out!

Some large dogs that I think are awesome and have great personalities are the Great Pyrenees, the Newfoundland dog, Greyhounds and if you get a German Shepherd young and give it obedience training, can be one of the best breeds to own; extremely intelligent.

I'm very partial to German Shepherds. I've rescued both of mine. One at 14 weeks and that other at a year old. Both are extremely intelligent and took to obedience training quickly. I'm a huge pushover though.. so they get away with more than they should. (Mostly when it comes to jumping on furniture) But at the core, they are good dogs. I trust them with anyone. Good luck Bella!

The only thing I will say about German Shepherds is to be very, very careful when choosing one, either as a puppy or an adult because of the problems they can have with hip dysplasia.

The sperm donor's family had a GSD when he and Ma Kitty first met and she adored the dog and advised me that if I ever wanted a dog for both companionship and security to go with a male GSD. However they can also be awesome escape artists - Prince could clear a 6 foot fence without a problem.

I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me. Hunter S ThompsonHow big would a T-Rex wang be?! - Karistiona

My family always had GSD's (when my mom was younger). They are fantastic family dogs, but you have to take the time to train them properly. They are so smart and just one of the most beautiful animals on the planet.

The sperm donor's family had a GSD when he and Ma Kitty first met and she adored the dog and advised me that if I ever wanted a dog for both companionship and security to go with a male GSD. However they can also be awesome escape artists - Prince could clear a 6 foot fence without a problem.

Yes!! My Male can get in and out of anywhere. Sometimes I think he can walk through walls. He's learned how to open doors, fences, and as a puppy he broke out of 3 metal crates. I would come home to find him chillin on the couch. When he escapes, he never goes too far though. Typically Shepherds are pretty loyal and stay close..but there's always one out there...

From what Ma Kitty has told me Prince was a Police reject who had been rehomed in the community because they couldn't get him over a fear of fire. She says that sperm donor's sisters had learned to walk by holding on to his fur. She often jokes that she should have taken the dog and left the sperm donor lol.

I love GS dogs but I just worry about their power and strength. We met two goldendoodles last night. OMG, sweetest dogs ever! My daughter has already said she wants to be responsible for walking/feeding and (after we do it first) training him with commands. However, she really, really doesn't want a Goldendoodle. I'm trying to figure out if we go back to the drawing board (maybe a lab mix that would be smaller) or hope she falls in love with a goldendoodle puppy.

I have a lab/shepherd mix and she's really chill 99% of the time, even around my two year old niece. I've had a crazy ass lab and a crazy ass shepherd in the past (as a kid - training them wasn't my job) and especially since I haven't been the best at training Zeej, I feel like I really lucked out with her temperament.